" ... that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me." ~John 17:21
This is a line from the real Lord's Prayer. It was what was on the heart of Jesus, important enough for Jesus the Son to ask it of the Father.
Who is Jesus praying for?
"I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; ~John 17:20 That's you and me! Christians in 2010, and soon 2011.
How close should we be? As close, as unified, as "together" as Jesus is with the Father!
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
Why? So that the world will believe. Is it impossible for the world to believe in Jesus when the Body of Christ is not in unity?Probably not because with God, nothing is impossible.
But Jesus said he wanted this "so that the world would believe ... " Disunity in the Body of Christ, fighting and feuds, schisms and splits, all serve to cast doubt on the truth of the Scriptures in the eyes of the unbeliever. If Jesus and the Father are one, it would only make sense that His body should be one, and that we should be one with Him, us in Him, and Him in us.
Oh God, as Jesus prayed, make us one -- one with each other, one in You, You in us. Anything short of that misses the mark. In Your name we ask it, Amen.
